During my developmental years as a teen I often struggled with depression. I was weighed down with guilt and tore myself apart with self-loathing. I was conflicted, frustrated, embarrassed, confused, and suffering. My source of pain was due to my personal sexual sins. These minuscule sins included very infrequently masturbating (never to completion) and sometimes…
I always dreaded the interviews. Even when my dad was the bishop. That probably made it worse honestly. I knew it was abnormal for kids my age to be exposed to this type of questioning but it’s not like I had any choice to go. Throughout my youth and early adult life I struggled with…
When I was 12 years old I was sexually abused by my dad. He was serving in a bishopric at the time. And he had earlier served as a bishop. After I was 18 and finally told someone the words from my stake president was to “forgive and forget”. My dad was not released from…
My beautiful daughter was tormented by the questions asked by her bishop in the worthiness interviews. I did not know anything about this until you stood up against this horrific practice. I asked her if this had happened to her, and she told me some of the details. When she was twelve, the bishop asked…
I’m telling this story in hopes that it will help many not go through what I have. My motive is not to shame anyone my motive is to bring to light what’s going on behind closed doors I would also like to add that what I’m about to say most people do not know about…
When I was seventeen, the stake executive secretary knocked on the door of my Sunday School class during the second hour. He said the Stake President would like to meet with me. Of course, my heart started to race and I began to sweat. I was nervous. The first thing that goes through your mind…
My mom had remarried,I was 15. I was trying to make friends in our new ward. I was sexually active. My mom set up an appointment with the bishop. My bishop told me that I would never find a “worthy husband” because “who would want Abc gum.” I struggled with self worth until leaving the…
A very close friend told me that after she’d read just a few of these stories, it threw her into weeks of depression. After nearly 50 years she still hadn’t healed from the sexual abuse she suffered as a young teen. She’d never shared her story before; other than with her husband. My heart broke…
I have three major incidents in my life within the church that I feel strongly compelled to share. I want my story to be heard so that it can be a force of change among so many others. My story began sixteen years ago, at the age of six. I was molested by my primary…
In college, my boyfriend and I started experimenting sexually and I never felt guilty about it, but I knew that I should probably go talk to my bishop. While my bishop was very kind and I (thankfully) didn’t have a negative experience going in and talking to the bishop… I was humiliated at the fact…